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TOP STORIES
12/17/2004
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1) EU-TURKEY: Europe Capitulates without Immediate Conditions
2) Thousands of European Armenian Demonstrate against Turkey-EU Accession
3) Turks Eye Europe for Jobs
4) Gasparian Strikes Back
5) New York Times Journalist Skews the Truth about the Lives of Young
Armenians
6) Former ARS Sponsored Student Gives the ARS a Boost
7) AYF New Jersey "Arsen" Senior Chapter Member Wins Afghanistan's First
Marathon
8) ANC Mixer Attracts Community Leaders
9) Knock, Knock, Knockin' on EU's Door
10) Irritants II
11) Armenian Youth Protest at Netherlands Consulate
1) EU-TURKEY: Europe Capitulates without Immediate Conditions
"These were not negotiations; this was surrender. The idea of an integrated
Europe has been seriously compromised"
BRUSSELS--The European Council, in a meeting on Friday in Brussels, voted to
open discussions, without any preconditions, on Turkey's future admission to
the European Union. The process is set to begin on October 3, 2005.
Debates preceding the European Council vote were heated, with Turkey's
failure to recognize Cyprus being the primary obstacle. The specific point of
contention was the Turkish Prime Minister's refusal to sign a draft Customs
Agreement on Friday between Turkey and the ten new members of the European
Union. In the end, the European Council yielded to Turkish demands,
agreeing to
postpone this signature until sometime before next October.
The draft EU entry terms Turkey has agreed to dictate the following:
Turkey must sign a customs accord extending to all EU members, including
Cyprus; the accord must be signed by the start of entry talks, proposed for
October 2005; membership talks will be open-ended; there is no guarantee of
full membership if conditions are not met; if negotiations do fail, Europe
will
not turn its back on Turkey; Turkey must continue with political and economic
reforms; some safeguards may remain over migration of workers from Turkey.
A Turkish official quoted Erdogan as saying at one point: "You are choosing
600,000 Greeks (Cypriots) over 70 million Turks, and I cannot explain this to
my people."
The Council decided to open talks with Turkey despite the fact that Turkey
fell short of meeting the clearly identified expectations of the European
Parliament, as adopted in a resolution this past Wednesday. Among these are
calls for Turkey's recognition of the Armenian genocide, recognition of an
independent Cyprus, progress on the Kurdish question, and human rights
concerns. Significantly, European Council members did not even raise the
Parliament's recommendations at their meeting.
In a dramatic development that lowers the bar for Turkey's eventual
acceptance
into the Union, the Council abandoned its traditional consensus model, in
which
one nation could essentially veto Turkey's membership. In its place, they
stipulated that fully one third of the EU member states would need to object
before negotiations are halted.
"These were not negotiations; this was a surrender. The idea of an integrated
Europe has been seriously compromised," declared Laurent
Leylekian, Executive Director of the European Armenian Federation. "This
unfortunate result is due to the weakness of the European Union's political
structures and the failure of leadership on the part of European heads of
state
in standing up to Ankara's inflexibility and outright rejection of European
values."
"We are, of course, gratified that our efforts over the last several years
have successfully placed the Armenian genocide and Turkey's blockade of
Armenia
on the agenda of the highest levels of discussions concerning Turkey's
possible
acceptance into the European Union. However, in light of the failure of
European leaders to stand up against Turkey's aggressive and denialist
government, we call on citizens of the European Union to safeguard Europe's
values through the exercise their democratic rights." added Leylekian.
2) Thousands of European Armenian Demonstrate against Turkey-EU Accession
BRUSSELS (Combined Sources)--Thousands of Europeans of Armenian origin
demonstrated during a European Union summit in Brussels on Friday calling on
Turkey to admit to its genocide against Armenians.
The protesters, who arrived from throughout 10 European countries
specifically for the gathering outside EU headquarters, insisted such an
acknowledgment must be a precondition for Turkey to begin talks on joining the
EU.
"We wish to let the 25 EU countries now gathered know that citizens of
Armenian extraction want Turkey to acknowledge genocide as a precondition for
opening membership negotiations," said one of the protest organizers.
Busloads of demonstrators arrived from Paris, while planes were chartered
to ferry in others from around Europe.
Speakers addressing the crowd included Garo Hovsepian, mayor of a district
of the French Mediterranean city of Marseille. He said a delegation had been
received here by the Dutch, who currently preside over the EU.
Meanwhile in Armenia, more than 200 young people demonstrated outside the
European Union Commission's office in the capital Yerevan.
"European countries must not weaken because of false reforms in Turkey and
must not integrate into their ranks a country that committed the great crime
against humanity, genocide," they declared in a letter to the commission
office.
"In agreeing to start negotiations, European countries are taking on
responsibility for this crime," it added.
France, in 2001, became the third European Union nation to pass a measure
describing the 1915-1917 Ottoman Empire massacres of Armenians as genocide.
The European Parliament, in 1987, adopted a resolution which stated that
the
"tragic events of 1915-1917 against the Armenians based on Ottoman territory
constitute a genocide" according to the United Nations definition.
3) Turks Eye Europe for Jobs
(Bloomberg)--Almost half the respondents in a poll of 1,326 Turkish people in
20 Turkish cities said they would like to work in another European Union
country should Turkey become a member of the bloc, Stern magazine reported.
Twenty percent of the people surveyed between Nov. 8-19 by Nuremberg-based
Gesellschaft fuer Konsumforschung said they would like to work in Germany
while
29 percent said they would like to work in another EU country. Of those
wishing
to work in Germany, 71 percent would like to bring their family, the poll
showed, Stern said in an e-mailed statement.
Seventy-six percent of the respondents said they want Turkey to join the
EU, 42 percent said Germans would like Turkey to become a member, and 38
percent said Germans are opposed to Turkey's membership. Stern said the
poll is
representative of 65 percent of Turkish people living in cities. Its margin of
error is 5 percent.
4) Gasparian Strikes Back
YEREVAN (Armenpress)--Armenia again stressed that a "package solution"
must be
sought in resolving the Mountainous Karabagh conflict rather than the
"step-by-step approach," singled out by Azeri President Ilham Aliyev last
week,
while he expressed doubts about Armenia's ability to implement independent
policy, saying "Armenia is Russia's advanced post in South Caucasus."
"Armenia's position concerning the Karabagh negotiations is clear and
hasn't changed. We once again assure that negotiations in Prague were based on
the package solution, and we are ready to continue them as we have stated many
times," said Armenia's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hamlet Gasparian. "If the
Azerbaijani side… is confused and doesn't know with whom to hold the
negotiations, we will again have to point to Stepanakert. We hope they know
where Mountainous Karabagh is situated."
While the "package solution" proposes settling key problems, including
status, security guarantees, and troop withdrawal, with a single,
comprehensive
agreement, the "step-by-step" approach
calls for Armenia to surrender specific buffer zones to Azerbaijan, in
exchange
of deployment of international peacekeepers in Mountainous Karabagh.
5) New York Times Journalist Skews the Truth about the Lives of Young
Armenians
Quite a stir has developed in response to Susan Sach's article, Young
Armenians Puzzle over Their Homeland, published in both The New York Times and
International Herald Tribune, and was rerun in Asbarez on December 11.
It all began with an announcement on an Armenian internet-forum on
November 4,
about a New York Times journalist who had arrived in Armenia to find out how
the Armenian youth live. "She just wishes to communicate in a natural
environment," read the posting.
For Sachs, the natural environment was apparently a smoky corner of the Red
Bull bar, a favorite hangout for university students. The meeting was planned
and conducted there.
Participants met Sachs, talked about a variety of issues, then forgot about
her fairly soon.
The peace broke in the December 9 issue of the New York Times, bearing the
rather depressing title: "For Young Armenians, A Promised Land without
Promise." The article was also reprinted in the International Herald Tribune
under the title "Young Armenians Puzzled Over their Homeland."
Sachs, incidentally, works as an Istanbul correspondent for The New York
Times.
Zara Amatuni, 21, one of the students who participated in the
forum, is
quoted in the article as saying, "We can fit in anywhere…The only place we
can't is Armenia."
Amatuni, however, surprised when the article hit, said Sachs "omitted all the
good that was said and left only what was interesting to her. I said I
would do
my best to stay here because it is my country. Moreover, a lot of improvements
have already taken place. But she did not publish that statement." Amatuni,
who
has been debating about the article on www.armcb.com forum, said the worst
part
is that Sachs agreed with her on every point, but later convoluted the story
and chose to ignore the central topics covered during their discussion.
In her attempt to depict totally desperate Armenian youth who are ready to
seek a future anywhere but in Armenia, Sachs introduces 22-year-old programmer
Viktor Aghababov, who plans to travel to Moscow in search of better luck,
revealing that his monthly salary is $650.
To the average American or European who has no idea about the cost of living
in Armenia, the figure is dismal. In reality, however, a $650 salary in
Armenia
is more than enough to maintain a relatively high standards of
life--especially
for a twenty-two year old.
Aghababov simply calls the article a "provocation," and questions why Sachs
did not report that all the participants particularly expressed that
Armenia is
developing.
The interviewees, who say they did not know their photos and names would be
published, say their rights were violated and plan to submit a letter of
complaint to the New York Times editorial office.
6) Former ARS Sponsored Student Gives the ARS a Boost
--"I will never be able to repay the ARS," said Ajemian.
GLENDALE--The Armenian Relief Society (ARS) of Western US Regional Executive
received an encouraging boost just in time for the holidays. An exciting
office
dedication at the ARS regional headquarters in Glendale, along with an elegant
luncheon, with over 400 members in attendance, marked a memorable end to a
great year.
As a former ARS sponsored student, Abraham Ajemian, with his wife Antaram,
returned the favor by sponsoring one of the ARS offices. Last May, as Mr. and
Mrs. Ajemian accompanied ARS members on a trip to ARS project sites in Armenia
and Karabagh, they were inspired to do more for the ARS, in addition to the
eight orphans they were already sponsoring through the ARS Sponsor-A-Child
program.
The ARS General Accountant/Controller of the Western Region, Jasik Jarahian,
arranged for the sponsorship of one of the offices located on the second floor
of the ARS Western Region headquarters building in Glendale. The generous
donation of $20,000 was officially made during a luncheon, with ARS Regional
Executive Vice-Chair, Sona Madarian, calling it "a day of celebration."
Speaking on behalf of the Regional Executive, Madarian said, "There were,
there are, and there will be those who believe in the ARS, because they
appreciate the ARS' accomplishments. Our work speaks for itself."
Prelate Archbishop Moushegh Mardirossian, along with parish priest of St.
Mary
Church in Glendale Rev. Ardag Demirjian, officiated the blessing of the newly
refurbished office on December 5.
As Vice Chair of the ARS Central Executive Hasmig Derderian, along with
Madarian, placed the ARS emblem and tri-color ribbons on the couple, the
sponsors cut the ribbon to the office. In attendance were ARF Central
Committee
representative Karo Khanjian, Chair of the Armenia Fund West Coast Board Maria
Mehranian, Hamazkayin Cultural and Educational Association's Regional
Executive
representative Hrayr Shirikian, representatives of the Homenetmen Ararat
Chapter, as well as over 100 former sponsors, current and former members of
ARS
Regional Executives, and current members of ARS chapter executives.
7) AYF New Jersey "Arsen" Senior Chapter Member Wins Afghanistan's First
Marathon
US soldier Mike Baskin, a senior member of the AYF NJ "Arsen" Chapter, won
Afghanistan's first marathon on December 12. The AYF, along with the rest of
the country, is proud both of Mike's accomplishment and duty to his country.
TIRIN KOT, Afghanistan (AP)--A US soldier won Afghanistan's first marathon on
December 12, battling the country's thin mountain air for more than three
hours
before crossing the finish line, where he promptly burst into tears
remembering
four comrades killed in recent fighting.
A total of 184 soldiers and civilians working for the US military took
part in
the race at Firebase Ripley, a remote camp near Tirin Kot in central Uruzgan
province, facing high altitude and a bumpy track as well as the threat of
attack.
Plastic palm trees among the gun stores and bunkers near the course lightened
the mood for the runners, who the Afghan National Olympic Committee said were
competing in the first marathon in the war-ravaged country's history.
But the darker side of their mission resurfaced as the winner labored across
the finish line after five long laps of the airstrip to cheers and handshakes
in 3 hours, 12 minutes and 15 seconds--an impressive time for the conditions.
"I just thought about those four guys when I crossed, that they won't be
going
home with us, and it kind of hit me," 1st Lt. Mike Baskin, a native of
Santiago, California, told an Associated Press reporter.
The race, which ended nearly three hours before 20,000 people began the
Honolulu marathon, was the idea of members of the US Army's 2nd Battalion, 5th
Infantry Regiment, based at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii, who didn't want to
miss out on the competition.
The unit, part of the 25th Infantry Division, is operating in one of
Afghanistan's most hostile areas. It suffered its latest casualties when a
bomb
ripped through a patrol near Deh Rawood, another town in Uruzgan, on Nov. 24,
killing two soldiers. A similar attack killed two other soldiers in October.
Helicopters flew troops in from across Afghanistan for the race. Before the
start, the assembled runners cheered as two military jets thundered low over
the base, which lies 4,500 feet above sea level, and into the surrounding
mountains.
The competitors, shorn of their guns and flak jackets, toiled around the
circuit in shorts and T-shirts under cloudy skies and in temperatures of about
13 Celsius (55 Fahrenheit).
Some of the course was gravel, but most was covered by fine dust that a rare
overnight shower had turned to mud in patches. Its single hill was dubbed
Diamond Head for the Honolulu landmark, an extinct volcano.
The first woman to finish was Spc. Jill Stevens, a 21-year-old from Utah,
whose helicopter battalion is deployed at Bagram Air Base near Kabul.
All 153 finishers were presented with the same medals, certificates
and
black sponsored T-shirts as their Honolulu counterparts, and their times
are to
be recorded and listed in the same booklet.
8) ANC Mixer Attracts Community Leaders
GLENDALE--Over 90 community leaders and elected officials gathered at The
Cove
Thursday evening for a mixer hosted by the Armenian National Committee,
Glendale Chapter. The event provided guests an opportunity to meet the new
Executive Director, Alina Azizian, as well as the 2004-2005 board members.
Guests included State Senator Jack Scott, representatives from Congressman
Adam Schiff's office and Assemblyman Dario Frommer's office, Mayor Bob
Yousefian, and Councilmembers Rafi Manoukian, Frank Quintero, and Dave
Weaver.
Other guests included: Glendale Unified School District Superintendent Dr.
Michael Escalante, GUSD Assistant Superintendent Alice Petrossian, Glendale
Fire Chief Christopher Gray, Assistant Fire Chief Donald Biggs, Assistant
Police Chief Ronald DePompa, City Attorney Scott Howard, City Manager James
Starbird, Glendale Teachers Association President Sandra Fink, Armenian
National Committee of America Western Region Executive Director Ardashes
Kassakhian, Glendale Unified School District Board chairman Greg Krikorian,
and
board members Chakib Sambar and Pam Ellis, Glendale Community College Board of
Trustees members Ara Najarian and Anita Quinonez Gabrielian, and numerous
commissioners from the various city commissions.
"During the holiday season, it's difficult to get so many busy people in the
same room," commented Azizian, "but we had a fantastic turnout. It was
great to
meet the people that help make this city so wonderful. We have a great
coalition of community leaders working together to make this city even better,
and I look forward to working with them."
Board members also spent the evening informing the community about the five
sub-committees within the ANC Glendale Chapter. Board Chairman Pierre
Chraghchian noted, "This year we have established five separate committees to
handle fundraising, media relations, community relations, elections, and
Genocide commemoration." With the busy election season around the corner and a
new director to run the operations, the five subcommittees will play a key
role
in the organization.
Alina Azizian was appointed in November as the organization's first Executive
Director. The Armenian National Committee, Glendale Chapter, is located at 721
South Glendale Ave. in Glendale. You can reach ANC Glendale at
818.243.3444. To
find out more about the subcommittees (or to join), please email
[email protected].
9) Knock, Knock, Knockin' on EU's Door
BY SKEPTIK SINIKIAN
This last week has been an action packed one vis-à-vis Turkey's attempts to
storm the gates of the European Union. The media wishes the public to believe
that this is an issue of a Christian Boys Club wanting to admit the Bad Boy
Muslim--painting this issue with a brush that is reminiscent of private clubs
in America denying African-Americans or women access during the pre-civil
rights era. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Reporters, like their readership, are like children. They like a good
story. If the news isn't interesting, they have to find an angle that is. The
media and particularly the American media try to portray this as an issue
where
Turkey is this poor misunderstood child that has always lived in the
neighborhood but the other kids just don't want to play with him. Turkey sits
inside his house, staring out the window at the kids playing soccer (or foot
boll in Europe) in the park, and when he runs out to join them, he's ridiculed
and told to go home. (Cue the violins…wait for it…) Poor, sad Turkey. (wow!)
What will Turkey do? All it wants to do is play with the other children.
This is the story the media wants you to buy. This is the after school
special that wrenches people's hearts. "The must-see political issue of the
winter" --European Times. "Turkey's performance as the lonely outcast has EU
written all over it"--USA Tomorrow. "This tale of hope and courage is perfect
for the Holiday Season and reminds all we need to be more tolerant. Two thumbs
up, way up!" --State Department and Ebert.
Well, sometimes real life is scarier than anything Stephen King can
cook
up. Here's the story that you won't hear. You know that kid that lives in
that
house at the end of the street? Yeah, that kid who just sits there and stares
at us from his window and never goes to school? Well, you know why the other
kids never let him play with them? Sit down and let me tell you the real
story
of what happened--the Nightmare on Anatolia Street.
Years ago, there was a family that lived in that house. This was before
anyone had even moved into this neighborhood and before we had built the
bridge
across the creek that connects us to them. Well, that house has been there for
a long, long time. And actually, that mansion-sized house there was the
site of
about three or four different houses…at least until they came. Everyone liked
the family who lived there. The Armens were a polite family. They were hard
working, industrious, always went to church, and never bothered anybody. Then,
one day, a new family moved in from across town…way across town. They called
themselves the Seljuks or Ossmans or something, but nowadays they go by the
name Turk. Well, the Armens didn't want the Turks moving in but these guys
were
from a rough part of town. In fact, the reason they even moved to Anatolia
Street was because they were pushed out by some rough gang called the Mongols.
They were pretty pissed off when they moved out here and they took it out on
the poor Armens. Pretty soon, they'd moved into the Armen house too and made
the Armens into their butlers, maids, chauffeurs, and gardeners. If it wasn't
for the Armens, that house would have collapsed. One day, they tried to even
move into Mr. Austria's house, but the neighborhood council met and pushed
them
back to their original property borders.
The Turks tried to fit in with the rest of the neighborhood, but the
more they tried, the more they stuck out like sore thumbs. There was that one
annual block party many years ago when the Turks came over to Balkans house
and
allegedly tried to kidnap their youngest son or daughter. I'm not sure about
the details now. It was so long ago. But the point is that the Turks never
quite fit in.
Well, over time, because the neighborhood kept growing, there came a
point where all of the bad things that the Turks had done to the Armens were
forgotten. The poor Armens had become so used to being butlers and gardeners
that hardly anyone, except the old timers, even really remembered that the
Armens used to own that property. Every now and then one of the Armen's
younger kids would move away from the house never to come back. They'd tell us
stories of horrible abuse and domestic violence, but no one wanted to rock the
boat by going over there and telling the Turks how to live their lives.
Then things got really bad. One day, while the garbage man was
collecting
trash, he saw what he thought was a bloody rag in the trash and it looked like
human blood. He decided to call the cops. And so the cops showed up and asked
the Turks a bunch of questions. But in the end, there wasn't enough
evidence to
do anything about. Plus, like I said, this was a quiet neighborhood and
everyone had their own problems to deal with.
Every now and then, when I'd walk home from school and walk past that
house, I'd see ol' Mrs. Armen either watering the lawn or taking out the
trash.
She had this sad look on her face. And she was always, and I mean ALWAYS
bruised. She'd look at me with these eyes that seemed to call out for help,
but
I was a kid and there's nothing I could have done. But after what happened a
few years later, I wish I had. I wish someone had.
It was around the time when things were really bad in the neighborhood.
The Kërmans weren't getting along with the Francois family and there was
always
bickering going on between one family or another. The Turks had their own
problems. Mr. Turk had lost his job, three of his sons had moved back home
from
college, and were helping him get his house in order, and the Armens were
being
beaten worse than before. Then one night, we heard a series of blood curdling
screams and everyone was woken from their sleep. The screams went on for a
good
hour and everyone rushed out of their homes to see what had happened. On the
front lawn of the Turk Household was Mr. Armen, Mrs. Armen, and their 9 month
old baby sprawled across the lawn, both bodies bruised as usual but unusually
bloody and from what we could tell, the entire family lay there lifeless. Mr.
Turk stood over them with his hands covered in blood, a look of insane rage in
his eyes and kept staring around at everyone. Some say it was only a matter of
time before something happened. Others think the Armens were stupid to stick
around when all the signs were already there. But can you blame a family for
staying in their own household? Wasn't it our fault that we didn't act when we
saw all the signs? The cops came by and arrested Mr. Turk. His sons escaped
but
were hunted down in the following months by vengeful relatives of the Armens.
The cops kept Mr. Turk for questioning but somehow he was able to post bail.
Over time, the case dragged on and on and after another disaster hit the
neighborhood and another after that, no one seemed to even remember what had
happened on that tragic night. Or at least no one wanted to remember because
what Mr. Turk did was pure evil, but what the rest of us didn't do to stop it
was even worse.
Some say that the Turk has the rest of the Armen family members still
buried in his backyard. No one, not even the cops are willing to go over and
reopen the investigation. Every time I walk by that house, I know that a
murderer lives there. And even though all the heads of the different
households
will politely nod their heads in greeting when they see Mr. Turk or his
wife or
his poor lonely child in the street, at night, when they are home with their
own children, and they're tucking them away in their beds, they tell them
"Stay
away from that Turk house. Those people are murderers. They're not like us."
Skeptik Sinikian would like to be your neighbor or roommate. If you don't
drink or smoke and keep to yourself, contact him at [email protected] or
visit his blog at www.sinikian.blogspot.com.
10) Irritants II
By Garen Yegparian
Today we'll hit some more items that leave me peeved!
Why don't we hold "louder" remembrances of the Sumgait massacres? I'll bet
you
can't even remember the month and year they occurred! Such activities would
certainly keep Azerbaijan's diplomatic corps and their hirelings occupied with
denial instead of being able to act preemptively to Armenia's detriment.
Why don't we create more of a fuss over Azerbaijan's disruptions of the
ceasefire? This too would keep Azerbaijan's representatives skittering like
cockroaches to do damage control.
Why didn't we picket or otherwise counteract the Holocaust memorial held
in LA
last April featuring that despicable, genocide-denying-Holocaust-survivor of a
Congressman from the bay area, Rep. Tom Lantos? There were full page ads in
the
LA Times with that cretin's picture. I shudder as I remember it!
Why is the Soviet spelling of our language still in use both in Armenia and
diaspora? That divisive, orthographically destructive obscenity should be sent
off to join the dinosaurs!
Why don't we CELEBRATE, and yes I mean exactly that, the assassination of
Talaat Pasha and his ilk? Imagine. We'd be drinking toasts all night to
Shiragian, Tehlirian, Torlakian, Yerganian, and the others. It'd be great!
Why do we keep purchasing massive quantities of made-in-Turkey products? I
know, I know, this is a rerun, but well worth bringing up again because
it's so
abhorrent!
Why are we not cynical about the publication of General Antranig's biography
in Turkish earlier? Is the translation true to Chelabian's original? Did the
author pre-approve it? How could that happen when Antranig is one of the
biggest ogres in Turkish eyes? What's up?
Why do we tolerate vermin such as those Armenians who are willing to become
willing tools of Turkish and American diplomacy by lending their names to TARC
(Turkish-Armenian Reconciliation Commission) or anything like it that might
come as recently reported by Harut Sassounian. These people are traitors, pure
and simple. We ought to shun them completely. The let's see what kind of
legitimacy they can bring to such debauched initiatives.
Enough, more in a few months.
11) Armenian Youth Protest at Netherlands Consulate
LOS ANGELES--Over 100 Armenian American youth protested at the Netherlands
Consulate General Offices on Thursday, December 17. The protest was in
reaction
to the impending European Union accession talks with the Republic of Turkey.
The Dutch currently hold the six-month EU presidency. Official representatives
of the Armenian Youth Federation (AYF) met with the Consul General of the
Netherlands and expressed their opposition to Turkey's possible membership in
the EU. In an official letter, the AYF outlined numerous human rights
violations by Turkey and specifically called on European leaders to hold
Turkey
accountable for perpetrating genocide against Armenians between the years of
1915-23. Spanning across two blocks of Wilshire Blvd. during the afternoon
rush
hour and holding placards with various slogans such as "No EU for Turkey" and
"First Justice, then EU," the protesters joined in the international Armenian
effort to voice opposition to Turkish membership in the EU and to bring into
the limelight Turkey's gross violations of basic human rights.
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TOP STORIES
12/17/2004
TO ACCESS PREVIOUS ASBAREZ ONLINE EDITIONS PLEASE VISIT OUR
WEBSITE AT <http://www.asbarez.com/>HTTP://WWW.ASBAREZ.COM
1) EU-TURKEY: Europe Capitulates without Immediate Conditions
2) Thousands of European Armenian Demonstrate against Turkey-EU Accession
3) Turks Eye Europe for Jobs
4) Gasparian Strikes Back
5) New York Times Journalist Skews the Truth about the Lives of Young
Armenians
6) Former ARS Sponsored Student Gives the ARS a Boost
7) AYF New Jersey "Arsen" Senior Chapter Member Wins Afghanistan's First
Marathon
8) ANC Mixer Attracts Community Leaders
9) Knock, Knock, Knockin' on EU's Door
10) Irritants II
11) Armenian Youth Protest at Netherlands Consulate
1) EU-TURKEY: Europe Capitulates without Immediate Conditions
"These were not negotiations; this was surrender. The idea of an integrated
Europe has been seriously compromised"
BRUSSELS--The European Council, in a meeting on Friday in Brussels, voted to
open discussions, without any preconditions, on Turkey's future admission to
the European Union. The process is set to begin on October 3, 2005.
Debates preceding the European Council vote were heated, with Turkey's
failure to recognize Cyprus being the primary obstacle. The specific point of
contention was the Turkish Prime Minister's refusal to sign a draft Customs
Agreement on Friday between Turkey and the ten new members of the European
Union. In the end, the European Council yielded to Turkish demands,
agreeing to
postpone this signature until sometime before next October.
The draft EU entry terms Turkey has agreed to dictate the following:
Turkey must sign a customs accord extending to all EU members, including
Cyprus; the accord must be signed by the start of entry talks, proposed for
October 2005; membership talks will be open-ended; there is no guarantee of
full membership if conditions are not met; if negotiations do fail, Europe
will
not turn its back on Turkey; Turkey must continue with political and economic
reforms; some safeguards may remain over migration of workers from Turkey.
A Turkish official quoted Erdogan as saying at one point: "You are choosing
600,000 Greeks (Cypriots) over 70 million Turks, and I cannot explain this to
my people."
The Council decided to open talks with Turkey despite the fact that Turkey
fell short of meeting the clearly identified expectations of the European
Parliament, as adopted in a resolution this past Wednesday. Among these are
calls for Turkey's recognition of the Armenian genocide, recognition of an
independent Cyprus, progress on the Kurdish question, and human rights
concerns. Significantly, European Council members did not even raise the
Parliament's recommendations at their meeting.
In a dramatic development that lowers the bar for Turkey's eventual
acceptance
into the Union, the Council abandoned its traditional consensus model, in
which
one nation could essentially veto Turkey's membership. In its place, they
stipulated that fully one third of the EU member states would need to object
before negotiations are halted.
"These were not negotiations; this was a surrender. The idea of an integrated
Europe has been seriously compromised," declared Laurent
Leylekian, Executive Director of the European Armenian Federation. "This
unfortunate result is due to the weakness of the European Union's political
structures and the failure of leadership on the part of European heads of
state
in standing up to Ankara's inflexibility and outright rejection of European
values."
"We are, of course, gratified that our efforts over the last several years
have successfully placed the Armenian genocide and Turkey's blockade of
Armenia
on the agenda of the highest levels of discussions concerning Turkey's
possible
acceptance into the European Union. However, in light of the failure of
European leaders to stand up against Turkey's aggressive and denialist
government, we call on citizens of the European Union to safeguard Europe's
values through the exercise their democratic rights." added Leylekian.
2) Thousands of European Armenian Demonstrate against Turkey-EU Accession
BRUSSELS (Combined Sources)--Thousands of Europeans of Armenian origin
demonstrated during a European Union summit in Brussels on Friday calling on
Turkey to admit to its genocide against Armenians.
The protesters, who arrived from throughout 10 European countries
specifically for the gathering outside EU headquarters, insisted such an
acknowledgment must be a precondition for Turkey to begin talks on joining the
EU.
"We wish to let the 25 EU countries now gathered know that citizens of
Armenian extraction want Turkey to acknowledge genocide as a precondition for
opening membership negotiations," said one of the protest organizers.
Busloads of demonstrators arrived from Paris, while planes were chartered
to ferry in others from around Europe.
Speakers addressing the crowd included Garo Hovsepian, mayor of a district
of the French Mediterranean city of Marseille. He said a delegation had been
received here by the Dutch, who currently preside over the EU.
Meanwhile in Armenia, more than 200 young people demonstrated outside the
European Union Commission's office in the capital Yerevan.
"European countries must not weaken because of false reforms in Turkey and
must not integrate into their ranks a country that committed the great crime
against humanity, genocide," they declared in a letter to the commission
office.
"In agreeing to start negotiations, European countries are taking on
responsibility for this crime," it added.
France, in 2001, became the third European Union nation to pass a measure
describing the 1915-1917 Ottoman Empire massacres of Armenians as genocide.
The European Parliament, in 1987, adopted a resolution which stated that
the
"tragic events of 1915-1917 against the Armenians based on Ottoman territory
constitute a genocide" according to the United Nations definition.
3) Turks Eye Europe for Jobs
(Bloomberg)--Almost half the respondents in a poll of 1,326 Turkish people in
20 Turkish cities said they would like to work in another European Union
country should Turkey become a member of the bloc, Stern magazine reported.
Twenty percent of the people surveyed between Nov. 8-19 by Nuremberg-based
Gesellschaft fuer Konsumforschung said they would like to work in Germany
while
29 percent said they would like to work in another EU country. Of those
wishing
to work in Germany, 71 percent would like to bring their family, the poll
showed, Stern said in an e-mailed statement.
Seventy-six percent of the respondents said they want Turkey to join the
EU, 42 percent said Germans would like Turkey to become a member, and 38
percent said Germans are opposed to Turkey's membership. Stern said the
poll is
representative of 65 percent of Turkish people living in cities. Its margin of
error is 5 percent.
4) Gasparian Strikes Back
YEREVAN (Armenpress)--Armenia again stressed that a "package solution"
must be
sought in resolving the Mountainous Karabagh conflict rather than the
"step-by-step approach," singled out by Azeri President Ilham Aliyev last
week,
while he expressed doubts about Armenia's ability to implement independent
policy, saying "Armenia is Russia's advanced post in South Caucasus."
"Armenia's position concerning the Karabagh negotiations is clear and
hasn't changed. We once again assure that negotiations in Prague were based on
the package solution, and we are ready to continue them as we have stated many
times," said Armenia's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hamlet Gasparian. "If the
Azerbaijani side… is confused and doesn't know with whom to hold the
negotiations, we will again have to point to Stepanakert. We hope they know
where Mountainous Karabagh is situated."
While the "package solution" proposes settling key problems, including
status, security guarantees, and troop withdrawal, with a single,
comprehensive
agreement, the "step-by-step" approach
calls for Armenia to surrender specific buffer zones to Azerbaijan, in
exchange
of deployment of international peacekeepers in Mountainous Karabagh.
5) New York Times Journalist Skews the Truth about the Lives of Young
Armenians
Quite a stir has developed in response to Susan Sach's article, Young
Armenians Puzzle over Their Homeland, published in both The New York Times and
International Herald Tribune, and was rerun in Asbarez on December 11.
It all began with an announcement on an Armenian internet-forum on
November 4,
about a New York Times journalist who had arrived in Armenia to find out how
the Armenian youth live. "She just wishes to communicate in a natural
environment," read the posting.
For Sachs, the natural environment was apparently a smoky corner of the Red
Bull bar, a favorite hangout for university students. The meeting was planned
and conducted there.
Participants met Sachs, talked about a variety of issues, then forgot about
her fairly soon.
The peace broke in the December 9 issue of the New York Times, bearing the
rather depressing title: "For Young Armenians, A Promised Land without
Promise." The article was also reprinted in the International Herald Tribune
under the title "Young Armenians Puzzled Over their Homeland."
Sachs, incidentally, works as an Istanbul correspondent for The New York
Times.
Zara Amatuni, 21, one of the students who participated in the
forum, is
quoted in the article as saying, "We can fit in anywhere…The only place we
can't is Armenia."
Amatuni, however, surprised when the article hit, said Sachs "omitted all the
good that was said and left only what was interesting to her. I said I
would do
my best to stay here because it is my country. Moreover, a lot of improvements
have already taken place. But she did not publish that statement." Amatuni,
who
has been debating about the article on www.armcb.com forum, said the worst
part
is that Sachs agreed with her on every point, but later convoluted the story
and chose to ignore the central topics covered during their discussion.
In her attempt to depict totally desperate Armenian youth who are ready to
seek a future anywhere but in Armenia, Sachs introduces 22-year-old programmer
Viktor Aghababov, who plans to travel to Moscow in search of better luck,
revealing that his monthly salary is $650.
To the average American or European who has no idea about the cost of living
in Armenia, the figure is dismal. In reality, however, a $650 salary in
Armenia
is more than enough to maintain a relatively high standards of
life--especially
for a twenty-two year old.
Aghababov simply calls the article a "provocation," and questions why Sachs
did not report that all the participants particularly expressed that
Armenia is
developing.
The interviewees, who say they did not know their photos and names would be
published, say their rights were violated and plan to submit a letter of
complaint to the New York Times editorial office.
6) Former ARS Sponsored Student Gives the ARS a Boost
--"I will never be able to repay the ARS," said Ajemian.
GLENDALE--The Armenian Relief Society (ARS) of Western US Regional Executive
received an encouraging boost just in time for the holidays. An exciting
office
dedication at the ARS regional headquarters in Glendale, along with an elegant
luncheon, with over 400 members in attendance, marked a memorable end to a
great year.
As a former ARS sponsored student, Abraham Ajemian, with his wife Antaram,
returned the favor by sponsoring one of the ARS offices. Last May, as Mr. and
Mrs. Ajemian accompanied ARS members on a trip to ARS project sites in Armenia
and Karabagh, they were inspired to do more for the ARS, in addition to the
eight orphans they were already sponsoring through the ARS Sponsor-A-Child
program.
The ARS General Accountant/Controller of the Western Region, Jasik Jarahian,
arranged for the sponsorship of one of the offices located on the second floor
of the ARS Western Region headquarters building in Glendale. The generous
donation of $20,000 was officially made during a luncheon, with ARS Regional
Executive Vice-Chair, Sona Madarian, calling it "a day of celebration."
Speaking on behalf of the Regional Executive, Madarian said, "There were,
there are, and there will be those who believe in the ARS, because they
appreciate the ARS' accomplishments. Our work speaks for itself."
Prelate Archbishop Moushegh Mardirossian, along with parish priest of St.
Mary
Church in Glendale Rev. Ardag Demirjian, officiated the blessing of the newly
refurbished office on December 5.
As Vice Chair of the ARS Central Executive Hasmig Derderian, along with
Madarian, placed the ARS emblem and tri-color ribbons on the couple, the
sponsors cut the ribbon to the office. In attendance were ARF Central
Committee
representative Karo Khanjian, Chair of the Armenia Fund West Coast Board Maria
Mehranian, Hamazkayin Cultural and Educational Association's Regional
Executive
representative Hrayr Shirikian, representatives of the Homenetmen Ararat
Chapter, as well as over 100 former sponsors, current and former members of
ARS
Regional Executives, and current members of ARS chapter executives.
7) AYF New Jersey "Arsen" Senior Chapter Member Wins Afghanistan's First
Marathon
US soldier Mike Baskin, a senior member of the AYF NJ "Arsen" Chapter, won
Afghanistan's first marathon on December 12. The AYF, along with the rest of
the country, is proud both of Mike's accomplishment and duty to his country.
TIRIN KOT, Afghanistan (AP)--A US soldier won Afghanistan's first marathon on
December 12, battling the country's thin mountain air for more than three
hours
before crossing the finish line, where he promptly burst into tears
remembering
four comrades killed in recent fighting.
A total of 184 soldiers and civilians working for the US military took
part in
the race at Firebase Ripley, a remote camp near Tirin Kot in central Uruzgan
province, facing high altitude and a bumpy track as well as the threat of
attack.
Plastic palm trees among the gun stores and bunkers near the course lightened
the mood for the runners, who the Afghan National Olympic Committee said were
competing in the first marathon in the war-ravaged country's history.
But the darker side of their mission resurfaced as the winner labored across
the finish line after five long laps of the airstrip to cheers and handshakes
in 3 hours, 12 minutes and 15 seconds--an impressive time for the conditions.
"I just thought about those four guys when I crossed, that they won't be
going
home with us, and it kind of hit me," 1st Lt. Mike Baskin, a native of
Santiago, California, told an Associated Press reporter.
The race, which ended nearly three hours before 20,000 people began the
Honolulu marathon, was the idea of members of the US Army's 2nd Battalion, 5th
Infantry Regiment, based at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii, who didn't want to
miss out on the competition.
The unit, part of the 25th Infantry Division, is operating in one of
Afghanistan's most hostile areas. It suffered its latest casualties when a
bomb
ripped through a patrol near Deh Rawood, another town in Uruzgan, on Nov. 24,
killing two soldiers. A similar attack killed two other soldiers in October.
Helicopters flew troops in from across Afghanistan for the race. Before the
start, the assembled runners cheered as two military jets thundered low over
the base, which lies 4,500 feet above sea level, and into the surrounding
mountains.
The competitors, shorn of their guns and flak jackets, toiled around the
circuit in shorts and T-shirts under cloudy skies and in temperatures of about
13 Celsius (55 Fahrenheit).
Some of the course was gravel, but most was covered by fine dust that a rare
overnight shower had turned to mud in patches. Its single hill was dubbed
Diamond Head for the Honolulu landmark, an extinct volcano.
The first woman to finish was Spc. Jill Stevens, a 21-year-old from Utah,
whose helicopter battalion is deployed at Bagram Air Base near Kabul.
All 153 finishers were presented with the same medals, certificates
and
black sponsored T-shirts as their Honolulu counterparts, and their times
are to
be recorded and listed in the same booklet.
8) ANC Mixer Attracts Community Leaders
GLENDALE--Over 90 community leaders and elected officials gathered at The
Cove
Thursday evening for a mixer hosted by the Armenian National Committee,
Glendale Chapter. The event provided guests an opportunity to meet the new
Executive Director, Alina Azizian, as well as the 2004-2005 board members.
Guests included State Senator Jack Scott, representatives from Congressman
Adam Schiff's office and Assemblyman Dario Frommer's office, Mayor Bob
Yousefian, and Councilmembers Rafi Manoukian, Frank Quintero, and Dave
Weaver.
Other guests included: Glendale Unified School District Superintendent Dr.
Michael Escalante, GUSD Assistant Superintendent Alice Petrossian, Glendale
Fire Chief Christopher Gray, Assistant Fire Chief Donald Biggs, Assistant
Police Chief Ronald DePompa, City Attorney Scott Howard, City Manager James
Starbird, Glendale Teachers Association President Sandra Fink, Armenian
National Committee of America Western Region Executive Director Ardashes
Kassakhian, Glendale Unified School District Board chairman Greg Krikorian,
and
board members Chakib Sambar and Pam Ellis, Glendale Community College Board of
Trustees members Ara Najarian and Anita Quinonez Gabrielian, and numerous
commissioners from the various city commissions.
"During the holiday season, it's difficult to get so many busy people in the
same room," commented Azizian, "but we had a fantastic turnout. It was
great to
meet the people that help make this city so wonderful. We have a great
coalition of community leaders working together to make this city even better,
and I look forward to working with them."
Board members also spent the evening informing the community about the five
sub-committees within the ANC Glendale Chapter. Board Chairman Pierre
Chraghchian noted, "This year we have established five separate committees to
handle fundraising, media relations, community relations, elections, and
Genocide commemoration." With the busy election season around the corner and a
new director to run the operations, the five subcommittees will play a key
role
in the organization.
Alina Azizian was appointed in November as the organization's first Executive
Director. The Armenian National Committee, Glendale Chapter, is located at 721
South Glendale Ave. in Glendale. You can reach ANC Glendale at
818.243.3444. To
find out more about the subcommittees (or to join), please email
[email protected].
9) Knock, Knock, Knockin' on EU's Door
BY SKEPTIK SINIKIAN
This last week has been an action packed one vis-à-vis Turkey's attempts to
storm the gates of the European Union. The media wishes the public to believe
that this is an issue of a Christian Boys Club wanting to admit the Bad Boy
Muslim--painting this issue with a brush that is reminiscent of private clubs
in America denying African-Americans or women access during the pre-civil
rights era. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Reporters, like their readership, are like children. They like a good
story. If the news isn't interesting, they have to find an angle that is. The
media and particularly the American media try to portray this as an issue
where
Turkey is this poor misunderstood child that has always lived in the
neighborhood but the other kids just don't want to play with him. Turkey sits
inside his house, staring out the window at the kids playing soccer (or foot
boll in Europe) in the park, and when he runs out to join them, he's ridiculed
and told to go home. (Cue the violins…wait for it…) Poor, sad Turkey. (wow!)
What will Turkey do? All it wants to do is play with the other children.
This is the story the media wants you to buy. This is the after school
special that wrenches people's hearts. "The must-see political issue of the
winter" --European Times. "Turkey's performance as the lonely outcast has EU
written all over it"--USA Tomorrow. "This tale of hope and courage is perfect
for the Holiday Season and reminds all we need to be more tolerant. Two thumbs
up, way up!" --State Department and Ebert.
Well, sometimes real life is scarier than anything Stephen King can
cook
up. Here's the story that you won't hear. You know that kid that lives in
that
house at the end of the street? Yeah, that kid who just sits there and stares
at us from his window and never goes to school? Well, you know why the other
kids never let him play with them? Sit down and let me tell you the real
story
of what happened--the Nightmare on Anatolia Street.
Years ago, there was a family that lived in that house. This was before
anyone had even moved into this neighborhood and before we had built the
bridge
across the creek that connects us to them. Well, that house has been there for
a long, long time. And actually, that mansion-sized house there was the
site of
about three or four different houses…at least until they came. Everyone liked
the family who lived there. The Armens were a polite family. They were hard
working, industrious, always went to church, and never bothered anybody. Then,
one day, a new family moved in from across town…way across town. They called
themselves the Seljuks or Ossmans or something, but nowadays they go by the
name Turk. Well, the Armens didn't want the Turks moving in but these guys
were
from a rough part of town. In fact, the reason they even moved to Anatolia
Street was because they were pushed out by some rough gang called the Mongols.
They were pretty pissed off when they moved out here and they took it out on
the poor Armens. Pretty soon, they'd moved into the Armen house too and made
the Armens into their butlers, maids, chauffeurs, and gardeners. If it wasn't
for the Armens, that house would have collapsed. One day, they tried to even
move into Mr. Austria's house, but the neighborhood council met and pushed
them
back to their original property borders.
The Turks tried to fit in with the rest of the neighborhood, but the
more they tried, the more they stuck out like sore thumbs. There was that one
annual block party many years ago when the Turks came over to Balkans house
and
allegedly tried to kidnap their youngest son or daughter. I'm not sure about
the details now. It was so long ago. But the point is that the Turks never
quite fit in.
Well, over time, because the neighborhood kept growing, there came a
point where all of the bad things that the Turks had done to the Armens were
forgotten. The poor Armens had become so used to being butlers and gardeners
that hardly anyone, except the old timers, even really remembered that the
Armens used to own that property. Every now and then one of the Armen's
younger kids would move away from the house never to come back. They'd tell us
stories of horrible abuse and domestic violence, but no one wanted to rock the
boat by going over there and telling the Turks how to live their lives.
Then things got really bad. One day, while the garbage man was
collecting
trash, he saw what he thought was a bloody rag in the trash and it looked like
human blood. He decided to call the cops. And so the cops showed up and asked
the Turks a bunch of questions. But in the end, there wasn't enough
evidence to
do anything about. Plus, like I said, this was a quiet neighborhood and
everyone had their own problems to deal with.
Every now and then, when I'd walk home from school and walk past that
house, I'd see ol' Mrs. Armen either watering the lawn or taking out the
trash.
She had this sad look on her face. And she was always, and I mean ALWAYS
bruised. She'd look at me with these eyes that seemed to call out for help,
but
I was a kid and there's nothing I could have done. But after what happened a
few years later, I wish I had. I wish someone had.
It was around the time when things were really bad in the neighborhood.
The Kërmans weren't getting along with the Francois family and there was
always
bickering going on between one family or another. The Turks had their own
problems. Mr. Turk had lost his job, three of his sons had moved back home
from
college, and were helping him get his house in order, and the Armens were
being
beaten worse than before. Then one night, we heard a series of blood curdling
screams and everyone was woken from their sleep. The screams went on for a
good
hour and everyone rushed out of their homes to see what had happened. On the
front lawn of the Turk Household was Mr. Armen, Mrs. Armen, and their 9 month
old baby sprawled across the lawn, both bodies bruised as usual but unusually
bloody and from what we could tell, the entire family lay there lifeless. Mr.
Turk stood over them with his hands covered in blood, a look of insane rage in
his eyes and kept staring around at everyone. Some say it was only a matter of
time before something happened. Others think the Armens were stupid to stick
around when all the signs were already there. But can you blame a family for
staying in their own household? Wasn't it our fault that we didn't act when we
saw all the signs? The cops came by and arrested Mr. Turk. His sons escaped
but
were hunted down in the following months by vengeful relatives of the Armens.
The cops kept Mr. Turk for questioning but somehow he was able to post bail.
Over time, the case dragged on and on and after another disaster hit the
neighborhood and another after that, no one seemed to even remember what had
happened on that tragic night. Or at least no one wanted to remember because
what Mr. Turk did was pure evil, but what the rest of us didn't do to stop it
was even worse.
Some say that the Turk has the rest of the Armen family members still
buried in his backyard. No one, not even the cops are willing to go over and
reopen the investigation. Every time I walk by that house, I know that a
murderer lives there. And even though all the heads of the different
households
will politely nod their heads in greeting when they see Mr. Turk or his
wife or
his poor lonely child in the street, at night, when they are home with their
own children, and they're tucking them away in their beds, they tell them
"Stay
away from that Turk house. Those people are murderers. They're not like us."
Skeptik Sinikian would like to be your neighbor or roommate. If you don't
drink or smoke and keep to yourself, contact him at [email protected] or
visit his blog at www.sinikian.blogspot.com.
10) Irritants II
By Garen Yegparian
Today we'll hit some more items that leave me peeved!
Why don't we hold "louder" remembrances of the Sumgait massacres? I'll bet
you
can't even remember the month and year they occurred! Such activities would
certainly keep Azerbaijan's diplomatic corps and their hirelings occupied with
denial instead of being able to act preemptively to Armenia's detriment.
Why don't we create more of a fuss over Azerbaijan's disruptions of the
ceasefire? This too would keep Azerbaijan's representatives skittering like
cockroaches to do damage control.
Why didn't we picket or otherwise counteract the Holocaust memorial held
in LA
last April featuring that despicable, genocide-denying-Holocaust-survivor of a
Congressman from the bay area, Rep. Tom Lantos? There were full page ads in
the
LA Times with that cretin's picture. I shudder as I remember it!
Why is the Soviet spelling of our language still in use both in Armenia and
diaspora? That divisive, orthographically destructive obscenity should be sent
off to join the dinosaurs!
Why don't we CELEBRATE, and yes I mean exactly that, the assassination of
Talaat Pasha and his ilk? Imagine. We'd be drinking toasts all night to
Shiragian, Tehlirian, Torlakian, Yerganian, and the others. It'd be great!
Why do we keep purchasing massive quantities of made-in-Turkey products? I
know, I know, this is a rerun, but well worth bringing up again because
it's so
abhorrent!
Why are we not cynical about the publication of General Antranig's biography
in Turkish earlier? Is the translation true to Chelabian's original? Did the
author pre-approve it? How could that happen when Antranig is one of the
biggest ogres in Turkish eyes? What's up?
Why do we tolerate vermin such as those Armenians who are willing to become
willing tools of Turkish and American diplomacy by lending their names to TARC
(Turkish-Armenian Reconciliation Commission) or anything like it that might
come as recently reported by Harut Sassounian. These people are traitors, pure
and simple. We ought to shun them completely. The let's see what kind of
legitimacy they can bring to such debauched initiatives.
Enough, more in a few months.
11) Armenian Youth Protest at Netherlands Consulate
LOS ANGELES--Over 100 Armenian American youth protested at the Netherlands
Consulate General Offices on Thursday, December 17. The protest was in
reaction
to the impending European Union accession talks with the Republic of Turkey.
The Dutch currently hold the six-month EU presidency. Official representatives
of the Armenian Youth Federation (AYF) met with the Consul General of the
Netherlands and expressed their opposition to Turkey's possible membership in
the EU. In an official letter, the AYF outlined numerous human rights
violations by Turkey and specifically called on European leaders to hold
Turkey
accountable for perpetrating genocide against Armenians between the years of
1915-23. Spanning across two blocks of Wilshire Blvd. during the afternoon
rush
hour and holding placards with various slogans such as "No EU for Turkey" and
"First Justice, then EU," the protesters joined in the international Armenian
effort to voice opposition to Turkish membership in the EU and to bring into
the limelight Turkey's gross violations of basic human rights.
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